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59 tasting notes

I received a sample of this tea from Dustin. Thanks Dustin!.

This tea is unlike anything I’ve ever had before. I don’t really like rose, so when smelling the dry tea (with a very dominate rose smell) I was hesitant. After brewing the rose smell still is very present, but you also smell something ‘behind’ the rose, something sweet and dark. It’s really very intriguing.

The taste holds up well to the promise of intrigue. The first or top note is floral, but the roasted almonds and cinnamon follow fast on its heels, so that overall the first impression is a dark and intriguing rose+. It has a body and complexity that is very similar to expensive red wines. A very true desert tea and one that has converted me to not strike rose teas off my list of to-try-teas.

This isn’t an everyday tea though. More like a special occasions or special mood tea. And it probably is a hit-or-miss tea as well. My partner can’t stand the smell of it and complains when I brew a cup. :-)

Preparation

195 °F / 90 °C 3 min, 0 sec

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Ysaurella
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this one is very appealing to me for ages !

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Ysaurella
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this one is very appealing to me for ages !

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Bio

What to say about myself and my tea drinking habits? I’ve been staring at the screen, reading other’s bio’s and still can’t come up with something worthwile. I’ll just stick to the basics.

I generally prefer white, green and oolong teas to black teas. As I read a scientific report that stated that black teas lower the level of stress hormones in the blood, I try to add a few cups of black tea every day.

Overall I prefer black teas to be flavoured. The white, green and oolongs may be flavoured or straight.

I brew my teas per cup, mostly in my – much loved – Kati mug with Cha Cult strainer. I’m rather a stickler for brewing time and temperature, so I use a tea timer and watercooker with temperature indication.

I also love a good cup of coffee and especially cappuchino. As far as I’m concerned, a good cappuchino requires a real milk/foam topping, not something made with skimmed milk, powder or the like. Unfortunately a lot of cafes still haven’t caught on to that one and serve low quality coffee and tea (type vending machine and bagged fannings). I hate it when, on a cold winter day, the choice is restricted to bad coffee, bagged fannings or a cold softdrink… :-(

As for rating teas, I more or less make the following distinction:

100:
Nothing is perfect. Probably won’t be using it ever.

98 – 99:
Nearly too good to be true.

90 – 97:
Exceptional.

80 – 89:
Excellent.

70 – 79:
Good. May rebuy depending on price and availability.

60 – 69:
Ok I’ll finish the cup and maybe even have a second, but probably won’t finish the entire package as I have other – (far) better teas in my cupboard.

< 60:
I feel cheated. I won’t ever be buying this again.

< 50:
This really is no good.

< 30:
I hate this. I want my money back.

1:
Beyond horrible!

PS: Recalibrated my ratings according to this index on 23 feb 2013.